Study: Cell phones reduce sperm counts

The researchers, whose findings were presented at the 62nd annual meeting of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, said the sperm may also be affected by the heat generated by the phones, RxPG News reported Tuesday.

Researchers from Cleveland, Mumbai and New Orleans said the effect on a man's sperm count depends on the number of hours he spends using his cell phone every day.

They said data from 364 men being treated for infertility revealed that men who do not use cell phones averaged sperm counts of 86 million per milliliter with 40 percent normal forms and 68 percent motility, while men who used their phones for more than four hours per day averaged sperm counts of 66 million per milliliter with 21 percent normal forms and 48 percent motility.

The researchers said further studies are needed to accurately identify the reason for reduced sperm counts in cell phone users.

Copyright 2006 by United Press International